Athletics in India

In India, the sport of athletics was introduced during the period of the British Raj. The sport is governed at national level by the Athletics Federation of India, which was formed in 1946.^[1] Despite its large population, few Indian athletes have won a medal in a global or major championship. This began to change in the 21st century, when Indians started taking greater interest in athletics more generally and improved facilities for the sport began to be built at a local level. At a continental level, it has been among the more successful Asian nations, though some distance behind China and Japan.

At the national level, there are three major athletics competitions: the annual Indian National Open Athletics Championships and Indian Inter State Senior Athletics Championships (both first held in 1961), and the quadrennial National Games of India (first held in 1924).^[2] An Indian National Championships event predated the Open and Inter State ones, being held from 1924 until 1961.^[3] An Indian Marathon Championships was first contested in 1938,^[4] while the Indian Cross Country Championships celebrated its 50th edition in 2015.^[5] An Indian Racewalking Championships was established in 2014.^[6] In addition to the main senior championships there are championships for under-20 and under-18 athletes at national and sub-national levels, as well as senior, non-championship competitions in the form of the Athletics Federation Cup and Indian Athletics Grand Prix tour.^[7]